NOAA’s Southwest Fisheries Science Center briefed the Pacific Fishery Management Council on highly migratory species science and near‑term assessment work.

Dr. Annie Yao described a major Pacific bluefin tuna management strategy evaluation that tested 16 candidate harvest control rules with tens of thousands of simulations, work presented to international treaty bodies. She said the joint working group did not adopt management action but that discussions will continue.

On the North Pacific albacore front, the center has expanded genetics sampling and is using genetic markers to examine sex‑ratio patterns observed in fisheries data; early findings show a male‑skew in catch that may stem from sampling or ecological causes. The center also reported expanded age and growth sampling for albacore and Pacific bluefin tuna and is piloting AI‑assisted otolith age estimation to speed processing.

Dr. Yao said the center expects to support a 2026 albacore tuna benchmark assessment and a retrospective review of the 2024 Pacific bluefin tuna benchmark. The Center emphasized that whole‑genome and close‑kin methods are maturing and that work on genetics, otolith aging, and diet studies will inform future stock assessments.

What’s next: NIMS and the center plan stakeholder webinars and joint working group meetings in early 2026 to support the albacore benchmark and ongoing Pacific bluefin work.

Sources: Dr. Annie Yao (Southwest Fisheries Science Center), Ryan Wolf (NOAA NIMS).